Arithmetic Operators in C

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In this article, we will discuss the arithmetic operators that are available in the C programming language. We will look at each operator and explore how it is used.

The Addition Operator (+):

The addition operator is used to add two numbers together. The syntax for using the addition operator is as follows:

int total = 5 + 7; // This will assign the value 12 to total.

The Subtraction Operator (-):

The subtraction operator is used to subtract one number from another. For example, if we want to subtract 2 from 9, we would use the following code:

int difference = 9–2; // This will assign the value 7 to difference.

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Here are examples to show how the multiplication and division operators are used in mathematical operations:

//multiplication operator
int length = 4, width = 3, total;
total = length * width;
printf("%d", total);

//division operator
double qty = 24, students = 5, res;
res = qty / students;
printf("%lf", res);

When using the division operator, remember to use either double or float data types. Using int will return a single-digit result.

Modulo Operator (%):

This operator will return the remaining value of a division. For example, in this block of code, the program will output 4 as the result of the operation.

int x= 24, y= 5, res;
res = x % y;
printf("%d", res); //res = 4

Increment and Decrement Operators (++ / --):

When we use these operators, the result is going to be either an increase or a decrease in the value assigned to the variable. For example:

int size = 65;

printf("%d", ++size); //size = 66

printf("%d", --size); //size = 64

And that is how we use arithmetic operators to perform mathematical operations in C programming.